Moscows Beauty/Some Final Thoughts

Yesterday, Wednesday, our host, Davida, hired a bus to take us to a magnificent park which is home to a castle that was built for Catherine the Great. Before the castle was completed, Catherine decided she did not want it. For many years it remained only partially complete. Years later city officials agreed to complete the castle according to the original blueprints. Now this magnificent castle sits amidst a beautiful park. It was delightful to spend a bit of time wandering the grounds.

From the park we went to Moscow's version of Times Square in New York. We ate lunch at Hard Rock Cafe, and then had an opportunity to shop and finally meet back at Starbucks. In the evening we passed some time at a park next to a very old convent for nuns and then we were treated to an enjoyable time at the Russian Circus.

When we first arrived in Moscow, we boarded an old train going to Ulyanosvk. The tone was set for the definite change in culture. We became an intricate part of a culture that continues to feel the affects of communist oppression.

Eight days later, we boarded a new, fancy train headed back to Moscow. Now our minds were getting ready to see the part of the wealthy Russian culture, and that we did.

Now I am on one of the largest commercial airplanes enjoying its comfort and ammenities that are a part of the flight. I will take time now to reflect and ask myself what I am bringing back home with me?

I desire to pray for my Russian friends and for the individuals whose lives the Lord allowed me to become a part of. I think of the security man at the hotel who gave me his seat in order to teach me some Russian. And I will always remember our bus driver who for some reason treated me like a queen and as a token of how he felt about me presented me with a bottle of the finest Cognac he could buy.

I prayed that our mission would not stop simply because we left the work in Ulyanosvk. The Lord continues to allow me to share Him even as I am on the plane sitting next to students from a private school in Pennsylvania. They have been traveling in Spain and its surrounding country. It was fun to show them pictures of the little church building in the making.

My concerns about our trip would fall into the category of leadership. Fortunately the Lord was most gracious and through His power blended people who were vastly different. I saw my dad, who normally sets the pace with the carpentry, step back so a highly skilled man could work efficiently. At times, at the work site, the authority of the experts was challenged. It is clear in the scriptures that we need to submit to those who are in leadership. The more we apply God's instructions, the more we will desire to submit to God's leadership.

I will go home a richer person as I have had a rare opportunity to actually become a "Russian" for a week. I do leave a part of my heart in the small city of Ulyanosvk.